Simulated snow composition containing mineral filler



United States Patent SIMULATED SNOW COMPOSITION CONTAINING MINERALFILLER Jack T. Hohnstine, Short Hills, John A. Versocki, SouthPlainfield, and Frank L. Steckhahn, East Orange, N.J., assignors, bymesne assignments, to American Home Products Corporation, New York,N.Y., a corporation of Delaware No Drawing. Application March 23, 1953Serial No. 344,247

2 Claims. (Cl. 260-333) This inventionrelates to an improved simulatedsnow, especially an improved-simulated snow adapted to be applied froman aerosol bomb.

Simulated snow has recently achieved great popularity fordecorativepurposes, for example, for application to Chrismas trees, to windows.and the like during Christmas holidays. The snow is usually applied froman aerosol bomb with a conventional propellant such as the Freons (duPont), Genetrons (General Chemical) or the like. The snow is usually asynthetic resin of the acrylic type, which, on the evaporation of thepropellant, leaves a more or less white deposit in the form of flakes,festoons or the like.

Such a simulated snow should be brilliantly White, opaque andscintillating, and should have suflicient adherence to the surfaces towhich applied so that it is not dislodged by accidental vibrations butshould not have suificient adherence to make it difiicult to remove whenits presence is no more desired. The resin-propellant combination shouldbe of such a character that it does not build up an undue deposit on theouter nozzle orifice of the bomb nor have a tendency to run down theside of the bomb during application.

The simulated snows now on the market suffer from several defects: theytend to be gray in color rather than clear white; they tend to lackopacity and hence lack brilliance by reduction of percentage of lightreflected; they tend to adhere too tenaciously to surfaces to which theyare applied, thus making removal diflicult, e.g. from window panes,rugs, table covers and the like; they tend to build up on the outernozzle orifice of the bomb and to run down the side of the bomb duringapplication.

Among the objects of our invention are to provide simulated snow that-Is brilliantly white and opaque,

Dries rapidly on contact with the surfaces to which it is applied andhence is easy to remove,

Has a minimum tendency to build up on the outer nozzle orifice of thebomb,

Has no tendency to run down the side of the bomb, and

May be produced at a reduced cost.

Furthermore, in case it isdesired to color the simulated snow fordecorative purposes, our snow produces with the same dyes or pigmentsmore brilliant results than is the case with simulated snow nowavailable. Of these objects we consider the most important one to be theprovision of simulated snow that dries practically instantaneously onapplication and hence is readily removable, and the next most importantobject is the provision of a simulated snow of exceptional brilliance.Other objects and advantages of our invention will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art from the following disclosure.

According to our invention these and other advantageous results areachieved by combining with the resin base a finely comminuted mineralfiller such as talc, mica and the like. We have found that fillers of aflaky crystal ice habit, such as micaceous talc and mica, produceparticularly good results. Although desirable, it is not essential thatthe filler in coarse or lump form should be white in color, since whenfinelycomminuted, as required for this use, most relatively lightcolored mineral fillers appear white. Although it is not essential inthe practice of our invention, the, filler may contain dyes or finelyground pigments such as titanium dioxide, ferric oxide, chromates,sulfides and the like. The pigments may or may not be fluorescent orphosphorescent. The lubricity of micaceous talc makes it particularlydesirable for our purpose by aiding the ease of removal of the materialwhen its presence is no longer desired.

We may use a filler having particles of a considerable range of size,e.g. from those passing a 325-mesh sieve (44 microns) to those passing a100-mesh sieve (149 microns), but we prefer to use a micaceous talcpassing 100 percent through a 325-mesh sieve.

The valve of the aerosol bomb suitable for our invention is aconventional valve having an orifice with an internal diameter of 0.015inch, although this size is not critical and may vary from 0.002 inch to0.05 inch. Suitable pressures for application of our improved simulatedsnow are those permitted by I.C.C. regulations for the low pressure typeof bomb, and are not over 55 lbs. per square inch absolute at 70 F. andmay advantagously be in the range 30-55 lbs. absolute. However, ourproduct may, if desired, be applied at somewhat higher or lowerpressures with suitable equipment.

We have found it essential to use a resin which is relatively freeof'disagreeable odor, and which is soluble in the propellant mixture.This latter characteristic is necessitated by the requirement of smoothand even distribution during application and a flufliy appearance whenapplied. We have had best results with acrylic resins suchas Acryloids(produced by the Resinous Products Division of Rohm and Haas,Philadelphia) and Hypalons (produced by E. I. du Pont de NemoursCompany, Wilmington, Del.) which are also pure solublephenolformaldehyde resins such as the Beckacites (produced by ReicholdChemical Co., Elizabeth, NJ)

As propellants, various mixtures of fluorochloro hydrocarbons may beused; these halogenated methanes or ethanes having low boiling pointsand high vapor pressure such as Freons (du Pont), Genetrons (GeneralChemical), etc. In the halogenated propellants described, certainvolatile organic solvents may be incorporated provided the necessarylimits as to non-inflammability and toxicity are observed. Among suchsolvents are dimethyl ether, acetone, methylethyl lcetone, diethylketone, methylene chloride and the like. One mixture which we foundsatisfactory consisted of:

Percent Freon 11 60 Freon l2 25 Dimethyl ether 15 Another satisfactorymixture consisted of:

Percent Genetron 101 Freon l1 8.5 Freon 12 16.5

Still another-satisfactory mixture consisted of:

Percent Freon 11 44 Freon l2 45 Freon 21 ll Other useable propellantformulations are disclosed below.

It will be clear to those skilled in the art that the composition ofsuch mixtures can be varied within wide limits .a reflux condenser andan agitator.

provided they have the desired characteristics of non-infiammability,non-toxicity, suitable vapor pressure and solvent power for the resinbase of our mixture. In the following table the chemical compositionsand physical characteristics of a number of suitable propellantconstituents are given:

TABLE Propellant constztuents Vapor Pressure (Pounds Boiling Trade N ameFormula per square Point,

inch 0. absolute at 70 F.)

Freon 11 CO1 F 13.8 23. 77 Freon" 12 0012B, 84 --29. 80 Freon 21 CHCIZF23 8. 92 Freon" 22---- OHCIF; 137. 2 40. 80 Genetron 100 OHQ'CHFZ 77. 224. 7 "Genetron 101 OHQ'OOIFQ 44.9 -9.2

75% G 101 Genetron 102-1.--" 16%% F 12 50. 7 14. 3

near 1: n D

Genetron 102P 25% G 100 101 34. 9 Dimethyl ether CH -OOH 73 24. 8Acetone CH3-OO-CH3 3. 5 56. 5 Methylethyl ketone- OH -OO-C2H5 1. B 79. 6Diethyl ketone Call -000 11 0. 3 102. 7 Methylpropyl ketone 011 0 O-(CHz):CHa 0. 3 101. 7 Methylene chloride... CHgOl: 6. 7 40. 1

G Genetron. F=Freon.

In formulating one embodiment of our invention we prefer to prepare amixture containing aproximately 10% solids by weight to 90% propellant.Of the solids 6.5% may advantageously be resin and 3.5% filler. Thesepercentages, however, may vary substantially, and the solids content maybe in the range from 5% to 50%, of which the filler would constitute0.5% to 42%all percentages being by Weight on the basis of the totalcomposition.

One of the advantages of our invention is that it permits the use of abatch process in filling containers. For example, We may provide ajacketed kettle equipped with The jacket is com nected with cooling andheating media. We charge the kettle with a propellant constituent inwhich the resin is readily soluble, e. g. Freon 11, add the dry solidingredients, and stir until the resin is dissolved and the filler ishomogeneously dispersed. During this step the temperature is maintainednear the boiling point of the Freon to speed the solution of the resin.When the resin is all dissolved, the mix is cooled and filled into thebombs with a conventional cam-filling machine. The remaining propellantconstituents are then added and the bombs sealed.

The following examples disclose embodiments of our invention but theseexamples are intended to be illustrative only and not to limit ourinvention, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims.

EXAMPLE III Percent Ingredient: by wt.

Freon 11 65.0 Freon 12 25.0 00.0% Freon 22 10. 0 Beckacite resin 30. 0Acryloid resin 40.0 10. 0% Tale 30. 0

EXAMPLE IV Percent Ingredient: by wt.

Freon 11 1 8. Freon 12 1 16. 5 90.0% ;Genlet30n 101 1 cry 0 resin Talc.35.0

EXAMPLE V Percent Ingredient: by wt.

"Freon 11 55.8 07 ZGenetaon02-P. 0

or 01 res Tal 35.0 0%

EXAMPLE VI Percent Ingredient: by wt. Freon" 11 53. 15 Genetron" 102-141. 40 89. 9% Acetone. 5. 45 du Pont 011 Blue A 1. 0 Acryloid resin 64.4 10. 1% Talc 34. 6

EXAMPLE VII [Very fine snow efiect] Percent Ingredient: by

Freon 11 80. 1)} gtFreoln 22. a

a on 5 TZii- 75.0 110% EXAMPLE VIII Percent Ingredient: by wt. Freon 1162. 3 Freon 12 29. 1 S3. 4% Freon 22 8. 6 Pigment mixture- 63.8Beekacite resin 18.1 16. 6% Talc 18. 1

Pigment mixture consists of: Percent Acryloid resin 37. 5 du PontAlizarine lake (RT-332-P) 12. 5 Acetone- 50. 0

We claim:

1. In a quick-drying simulated snow composition comprising a liquidpropellant having a superatmospheric vapor pressure at room temperatureand a solid organic snow-simulating material, said composition beingadapted, when sprayed on a solid surface, to leave a deposit of discretesnow-simulating particles, the improvement which consists in theinclusion in said composition of 05-42 percent of a comminuted mineralfiller passing a -mesh sieve and selected from the class consisting oftalc, micaceous talc, mica and mixtures thereof.

2. A simulated snow composition as defined in claim 1 in which 100percent of the mineral filter passes a 325- mesh sieve and constitutes3-9 percent of the composition.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,515,250 McIntire July 18, 1950 2,617,780 Lutz Nov. 11, 1952 V FOREIGNPATENTS 811,418 France Ian. 14, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICECERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent N00 2,894,928 July 14, 1959 Jack ToEichristineet al0 It is hereb certified that error appears inthe-printed specification of the above numbered patent requiringcorrection and that the said Letters Patent should read as correctedbelow.

001mm 1, line 29, for "UMiBIflEB" read m Christmas column 2, line 26,for ".advantagously" read advantageously line 39, after "are" insert mresins oi the polymerized acrylic ester type; same column 2', lines 39and 4G, strike out "soluble phanel formaldeihyde" and insert insteadphenelic' line 43, after "these" insert are column 3, line 32', for"aproximataly" read approximately mu Signed and sealed this. 8th day ofDecember 1959.,

(SEAL) Attcst:

KARL Ho AXLINE ROBERT C. WATSON Attesting ()fficer Commissioner ofPatents

1. IN A QUICK-DRYING SIMULATED SNOW COMPOSTION COMPRISING A LIQUIDPROPELLANT HAVING A SUPERATMOSPHERIC VAPOR PRESSURE AT ROOM TEMPERATUREAND A SOLID ORGANIC SNOW-SIMULATING MATERIAL, SAID COMPOSITION BEINGADAPTED, WHEN SPRAYED ON A SOLID SURFACE, TO LEAVE A DEPOSIT OF DISCRETESNOW-SIMULATING PARTICLES, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH CONSISTS IN THEINCLUSION IN SAID COMPOSTION OF 0.5-42 PERCENT OF A COMMINUTED MINERALFILLER PASSING A 100-MESH SIEVE AND SELECTED FROM THE CLASS CONSISTINGOF TALC, MICACEOUS TALC, MICA AND MIXTURES THEREOF.